41

MY HANDS RUN ACROSS the rough bark of the branches that make my shelter. I never get a splinter, though the wood is rough enough to give me one.

I close my eyes, trying to breathe. Center myself.

"I know you're watching me," I say out loud. "I know you feel protective of me. But I don't understand why."

I can sense Rook all around me, yet I don't see him. Not yet. But he's there. And there's something familiar in the way he's treating me. "We have a connection. You've been able to invade my mind. It shouldn't be a one-way street."

His voice is soft in my head, almost nonexistent.

"Oh, really?"

Yes.

No other information is offered. I didn't really expect it to be. I turn, trying to determine where he's hiding. Then I spot a ledge higher up in the dome, where the shadows seem restless.

"You don't have to hide from me. Maybe if we could talk like normal people—"

His shadowy form lands six feet away, facing of me. "What about me makes you think I'm a normal person?"

His words are bitter, almost regretful.

"Maybe you weren't always like this," I say. "Maybe there was more to you before."

He doesn't respond. I bite my lip, forcing my eyes to focus where his should be. All that exists is shadow. No eyes, nose, or lips where they should be. No expression.

Only hidden features in the dark void.

"Why do you need to cause this pain? There has to be more than just… nightmares and souls for you."

He laughs bitterly as I take a step closer to where he stands. "You assume that everything is black and white."

I don't step any closer, but I do begin to walk back and forth in front of him, pacing as I think out loud. "Maybe it isn't black and white, but I don't think this is all there is. There's a motive behind all of this."

"You ascribe too much humanity to a shadow creature like me."

I stop pacing and face him again. "You sound human. You look mostly human. There has to be a human heart beating inside your chest."

"Ah, my sweet Ophelia, you always want to find the humanity in something. But I'm afraid you give me too much credit. I will admit, at one point I was a human. I did have a human heart beating in my chest. And I loved someone. But then I lost her. I lost her because of my own stubbornness. But that was my past, and this is my present and future."

"If you were human… how are you now this shadow creature?"

"The Shadow Council found me. And they showed me what I was capable of after being doubted my entire life. Limitless power and endless possibilities. I couldn't resist."

"No."

He tilts his head. I imagine if he had features on his face, an eyebrow would be raised.

"No?"

I cross my arms. "I don't believe you. I don't believe you enjoy inflicting pain on people. Why else would you have put me here to protect me? Why else would you prevent me from fighting my fears?"

He appears closer now. I didn't notice him stepping towards me. Maybe he didn't. "I am protecting you, but you will still have to face your fear. There are limits to what my powers can do. I still have to follow the rules of the Shadow Council. But there are reasons I want to protect you. Reasons I will not tell the likes of you."

I stare hard at him, at his shadowy face, puzzled by his uncaring attitude. Deep down there is more. I know there is. The longer I stare, the more things grow clearer. I focus.

I refuse to believe he wants to be this way. Something about him feels… familiar.

And then things grow even clearer.

For a moment, there's something taking shape in the shadows. Something changing on the outside of his skin. The dark wisps are lightening, transforming.

Maybe even breaking apart.

He looks down at his arms, at his legs. "What are you doing to me?"

"I'm choosing to see a human, not a soulless void of shadows who claims he wants to hunt down humans and consume their souls. Because I know there's more to it than all of this."

"Wait." He backs up, but it's already too late. Something about him is shifting, changing.

The shadows are breaking.

Eyes become clear.

Gray as an unforgiving thunderstorm.

The shadows fall away, and in their place is someone I never thought I would see again.

Someone whose heart I broke in high school.

"Milo?"